Agathos' letter : to Aphrodite
Letter accompanying a sealed order to be handed to a third person, asking for an immediate acknowledgement.
One text, 3 sources · Trismegistos-Text 31785
Letter from Agathos to Aphrodite about a sealed letter of instructions TM 31785Oxyrhynchos3rd century A.D.
The same ancient text or artifact as recorded by 3 records across 3 independent projects, recognised as one entity by its TM-Text identifier. View on Trismegistos →
A private letter from Agathos to Aphrodite, sent from Oxyrhynchus in the 3rd century AD. He tells her that Doxa, the bearer, is bringing a sealed letter of instructions for Ptolemais from Chairemon the embroiderer, asks her to confirm receipt promptly, and sends greetings to her family and friends.
In English machine translation
[recto]
Greetings, Aphrodite, I, Agathos, salute you. Before all else I pray that you are in good health, and I make your obeisance before the lord Sarapis.
You will receive from Doxa, who is delivering this to you, the little letter of instructions for Ptolemais, which I received from Chairemon the embroiderer to send to her, sealed just as he gave it to me. Let us know quickly by message that you have received it, so that you do not burden people with writing a little letter to you, so that you do not become troublesome among people. And let me know about the first instructions too.
Greet your mother and your father and Agathos and Heraklammon and Didyme and Alexandra and Si...tria with her husband. Let her know that I greet her. Greet all your people individually by name in my name. Doxa also has some other things which she received […]
[…]
[verso]
To Aphrodite, from Agathos.
The 'proskynema' formula refers to an act of worship made on the recipient's behalf before the god Sarapis. The end of the letter is lost.
Working translation of the DDbDP edition, made with Claude Opus 5.5 from the edition and the catalogue records shown below (catalogued as Letter of Agathus to Aphrodite). It has not been reviewed by a papyrologist: check the edition before citing. Restorations follow the edition; […] marks lost text and (?) an uncertain reading.
p.oxy.14.1677
[r] χαῖρε, Ἀφροδείτη, Ἄγαθός σε ἀσπάζομαι. πρὸ μὲν πάντων εὔχομαί σε ὑγιαίνειν καὶ τὸ προσκύνημά σου ποιῶ παρὰ τῷ κυρίῳ Σαράπιδι. λήμψῃ παρὰ Δόξης τῆς ἀναδιδούσης σοι τὸ ἐπιστολίδιον τὸ ἐντολικὸν Πτολεμαίδος ὃ ἔλαβον παρὰ Χαιρήμονος τοῦ ποικιλτοῦ πέμψαι αὐτῃ ὡς ἔδωκέν μοι ἐσφραγι…